Overview
- CVS Health said it reached a proposed settlement with the FTC on Tuesday, positioning its Caremark unit to exit the insulin pricing case once agency leaders finish their review.
- CVS said the agreement still needs the FTC chair’s approval and that final terms will be set when the deal is formally finalized in the coming weeks.
- Reporting indicates the deal mirrors Express Scripts’ recent settlement that curbs rebate-based pricing, increases transparency, and shifts PBM pay to fees, which the FTC said could save patients up to $7 billion over a decade.
- Rebates pay pharmacy benefit managers after a drug is dispensed, a setup regulators say pushes list prices higher and can steer coverage to drugs that generate bigger discounts.
- J.P. Morgan expects only a nominal hit to CVS earnings, while the FTC’s 2024 case now leaves UnitedHealth’s OptumRx as the main holdout after Express Scripts settled earlier.